


A Chance Encounter

by GrannyWeatherwax



Category: Hana Yori Dango & Related Fandoms, 꽃보다 남자 | Boys Over Flowers (Korea TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cheating but not quite, Ex Sex, F/M, One True Pairing, Some Plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:36:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27727582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrannyWeatherwax/pseuds/GrannyWeatherwax
Summary: Alternate UniverseFive years after Gu Jun Pyo goes ahead with his marriage to Ha Jae Kyung, Gu Jun Pyo and Geum Jan Di find themselves snowed-in at a familiar ski resort on Christmas Eve.
Relationships: Geum Jan Di/Gu Jun Pyo, Geum Jan Di/Yoon Ji Hoo, Gu Jun Pyo/Ha Jae Kyung
Kudos: 29





	1. Murphy's Law

“I’m sorry, _bagsanim_ , but it looks like it’s going to be very difficult to travel back tonight. We just got some reports from our on-ground staff - we are completely snowed-in.”

For the hundredth time that evening, Geum Jan Di cursed her decision to come to this goddamn ski resort for the weekend. The seminar she had come to attend was uninspiring at best and, at worst, just another excuse for wealthy private hospital chains to poach top doctors from each other under the premise of an all-inclusive vacation. 

She wouldn’t have even been here if it hadn't been for her boss, Dr. Lee, who had had to cancel at the last moment. “It’s important we represent Medcare at these events, Dr Geum,” she had insisted when Jan Di had protested at being the last-minute replacement. “All the big pharma companies are going to be there - even some corporate head honchos. You know we need sponsorship for the new oncology ward.” She hesitated for a second over the phone. “I’d have sent someone more senior - but it’s the Christmas weekend, and no one wants to stay away from…” she trailed off, awkwardly clearing her throat. 

_Sure_ , thought Jan Di, _send the one single person in your team out on Christmas weekend, it’s not like she has any family or spouse to be with._

She had long stopped trying to spend Christmas with her parents, especially now that her brother had gone abroad to study. They always went to her uncle’s, who had the whole fishing village over for a community meal. The one time Jan Di had tagged along, it had been loud and cramped and exhausting, with an endless barrage of ‘when are you getting married?’ and ‘when are you making us meet your boyfriend?’ from inquisitive relatives that left her longing for the tiny apartment she had moved into a year ago to be closer to the hospital - where she could spend her one day off watching reruns in bed with a giant bowl of ramen and a couple of bottles of soju for company. 

“Is there any way you can book me a private car or something? I have a sixteen-hour shift starting tomorrow and I really need to get back to Seoul tonight.” 

“I’m afraid there’s been an advisory. It looks like we might be expecting more inclement weather. Perhaps if you had left earlier…? Unfortunately, we have now been advised to not let our guests travel tonight.”

 _Of course you have,_ she thought. Because this was her life - and if there was even the remotest possibility of things going wrong, they inevitably would. 

She sighed - trying hard to keep her patience. _This isn’t their fault_ , she reminded herself. But damn it, she would rather walk barefoot through a hundred feet of snow than spend the night _here_. Any ski resort, really. But this one especially. Because, even though it had been a lifetime ago, this entire place was steeped in his scent, his laugh, his big, striding footsteps. The sheer force of the memories had been like a physical assault on her senses the moment she stepped foot here this morning and it had taken all her professional resolve to not turn around and walk out immediately. By now - she glanced up at the clock at the reception: 5 p.m. - she was feeling more drained than after two back-to-back surgeries at the hospital. 

“I’m really sorry about this, ma’am.” The guy at the counter - a young man in his early twenties, barely out of college, maybe - smiled apologetically once again. “But if it helps, for all the guests who have been caught in the snowstorm, we’re offering a complimentary stay at our private cabin suites with -”

_Fine. Let’s get it over with._

She put on the smile she used on nervous patients and said, “I just need a place where I can order room service and pass out. Anything is fine.”

“Sure, ma’am. Just wanted to know if you would be open to sharing the suite with one of your colleagues from the seminar? They are, of course, two completely separate rooms but with a common living area. But the cabin is quite large, and the rooms are on opposite sides - so you wouldn’t have to interact with our other guest if you chose not to.” He smiled again, even more apologetic this time. “As you can imagine, we are almost full because it’s Christmas weekend, and with the additional guests who are stranded…”

“It’s fine. As I said, I just need a place to crash.”

“Of course, ma’am. This way, please.”


	2. What Money Can't Buy

Gu Jun Pyo was doing what he did best - throwing money at a problem to make it go away. But it just didn’t seem to be working.

“This is ridiculous. Do you have any idea how much my time is worth? The time I spend arguing with you here, I could be making enough to buy this entire place.”

“Sir, believe me when I say we’re trying our very best…” The manager bowed deep enough for his nose to scrape the gleaming glass table in his private cabin, wondering what he had done wrong in his past life to have the famously irascible CEO of the Shinwa group at his desk, demanding to be flown into Seoul on a private helicopter in the middle of one of the worst snowstorms they had seen in years.

“I don’t think the best is good enough here. I _need_ to be back in my office for a meeting with the German ambassador first thing tomorrow morning. I can’t understand how to make this simpler for you.”

He should never have agreed to come to this godforsaken place anyway. Why _this_ ski resort of all places? Why was Shinwa even sponsoring a ski-resort trip for doctors, for God’s sake? Sure, they were looking to get into health care in a big way, but no amount of business development was worth spending a night at this place. Not again. 

He should’ve just sent the Vice-President, or the COO. 

_So, why didn’t you, you moron_ , quipped an irrepressible voice in his head - a voice he’d been struggling to rid himself of for the past God-knows-how-many-years, to no avail.

“Sir, the helicopter you requested… _your_ helicopter, I mean… I believe the pilot has informed the hotel that visibility is too poor right now, and that he will head here as soon as possible. He expects he can start at dawn, if the storm subsides by then. You might still…”

“Might? Do you think I run one of the biggest conglomerates in the world based on ‘might's and ‘maybe’s?”

The manager cleared his throat. “I apologize, sir. I meant…”

A memory flashed for a brief second through his head - an apple, handed out sheepishly after a fight, and his throat constricted, like he was choking. He muttered, half to himself: “If everything could be fixed with an apology, why would we even need the law?” 

“Uh...I...sir, I beg your pardon?”

He sighed. He hated being the reasonable one. “Fine! I can’t waste my breath on this any more. Speak to the pilot again, tell him to get here as soon as he can. Find my secretary and my bodyguard. They’re here somewhere -” he waved airily towards the glass window that separated the office from the brightly-lit lobby, teeming with young, bright-faced couples taking pictures in front of the giant Christmas tree. “Tell them to take the evening off and find them some accommodation. Then get me your Presidential suite, send up the best red wine you have, and tell your staff that I do _not_ -” he paused, for emphasis, “want to be disturbed for the rest of the evening.”

“O-of course, sir.” 

The manager bowed several times as he backed out of the door. As soon as he shut it behind him, he gestured to his second-in-command, who was standing by the door, ready to jump in to defend his superior if the CEO’s temper was truly as legendary as rumoured. Now the manager leaned in and said something in his ear - something that made the second-in-command gulp and wipe his sweaty palms nervously on the front of his trousers. The Presidential suite was already occupied and, in the time that the CEO had spent fuming at the manager, there was now only one room left - a private cabin that had to be _shared_. Someone would have to let the CEO know of this development, and - here, the manager gave his colleague a little push towards the closed door - it sure as hell was not going to be him.


	3. Pyjama Party

Geum Jan Di was half-dozing on her bed when she heard the sound of the cabin door opening, and the muffled thud of a bag being dropped heavily to the floor. There was a bit of a commotion - she could hear some raised voices, definitely that of two men - one annoyed, the other obsequious - and then the distinct click of the door being firmly shut.

She wondered if she should go out and say hello. It was bound to be someone she vaguely knew - most of the doctors attending the conference were acquaintances, or friends of friends - the doctor’s circuit in Seoul was large, but it could still be pretty incestuous. That was another reason she had been desperately trying to avoid coming here. She didn’t want to run into Ji-Hoo sunbae, or one of his colleagues. Ever since they broke up a year or so ago - around the same time she moved into her own place - they had drifted apart, barely keeping in touch except for the occasional professional referral, or the annual ‘happy birthday’ text. She had heard through the grapevine that he was dating someone else now - and she was genuinely happy for him - but somehow the prospect of meeting him when she was alone and overworked on yet another Christmas had seemed too daunting. 

She could hear sounds of life from the living room - the soft groan of the sofa as someone landed heavily on it, the hum of the television set, the unmistakable sound of a bottle of wine being uncorked…

Jan Di sat up in bed. She could really, really, use a glass of wine right about now. The day had been excruciating - a thousand carefully buried memories floating up to the surface, threatening to pull her down, down, down once again into the shadowy pit of despair that had taken years to pull herself out of… 

She gave herself a shake. _Stop_. 

She looked at her watch - it wasn’t too late. It was a perfectly respectable time to go and introduce herself. And maybe, _maybe_ , wrangle a couple of glasses. She had been cursing herself for not thinking of this sooner. The resort’s phone service was down - probably because of the storm - and it was too cold and snowy to go all the way back to the main building to order a bottle. Besides, she was already in her pyjamas.

She wondered if she should change. But her oversized fleece button downs were entirely too comfortable, too warm, reminding her of one too many nights spent wearing his - 

_Stop. Geum Jan Di, stop this right now._

It was almost mechanical now, this reflex. Years of catching herself before things got too overwhelming. Years of swallowing down hurt and anger and frustration as she caught sight of “Korea’s Favourite Power Couple” plastered across billboards, magazine covers, her social media. Years of drowning herself in sixteen-hour shifts and calling herself a ‘workaholic’, like it was a choice she made, not a necessity. 

That was the final straw that had ended things with Ji-Hoo sunbae. She didn’t exactly remember when it was that they had started going out - the months after the Incident (she refused to face up to the fact that it was his marriage - his real, proper marriage that he had gone through with) - was such a blur that she barely remembered what she was doing. It seemed like she had gone through the rest of her time at high school like she was in somebody else’s body. Somehow managed to scrape together the grades to get through to medical school - that was entirely Ji-hoo sunbae’s doing, and she was eternally grateful. Then, the years of med school, followed by an internship so incredibly taxing that she was grateful she only had time to work and sleep, with no thought for anything else. It helped that _he_ was away in the States - somehow having thousands of actual, physical miles between them without the possibility bumping into him at every street corner had helped her get through her university years. 

In the middle of all this, she had fallen into a routine with Ji-Hoo sunbae - him picking her up after class, them having dinner somewhere or watching a movie, him dropping her off. And although it felt no different from before - Ji-Hoo sunbae was warm and kind as always, taking her sluggish conversation, her distracted, weak attempts at being normal, in his stride - somewhere down the line, Jan Di had to acknowledge that yes, they were dating, if it could be called that.

But even Ji-Hoo sunbae had run out of patience - something she had never thought possible. They had been seeing less of each other ever since she’d finished her internship and taken up a full-time post at Medcare and he had put his heart and soul into expanding his grandfather’s clinic, while still trying to pursue music on the side. But six months into her new job, when she had used her shifts as an excuse to skip dinner plans with him for the third time in a row, she had seen Ji-hoo sunbae break. It was the only time she had seen him angry, truly angry.

“You can’t keep doing this to yourself, Jan-di. You can’t keep using your work as an excuse to stop facing your reality. It’s been four years, you need to start putting your life back together. I know you still don’t care for me - at least, not in the way I care for you - but you need to move on.”

 _Move on_. People had repeated those two words to her so many times - from Ga-eul, to Ji-Hoo, to her parents - that they had practically lost all meaning. Did they know, she wondered, how badly she wanted to move on? To not wake up every morning with his face in her head, the memory of his hands around her waist, his breath on her neck, his mouth on hers. She wanted _desperately_ to forget. 

She had heard that one day you woke up and couldn’t remember the face of the person you used to love. It had been five years. She was still waiting for the day to come.


	4. What Goes Around...

Gu Jun Pyo surveilled the room from the sofa as he put his feet up on the coffee table. He would have much preferred the Presidential suite at the main building - a fact he had made abundantly clear to the manager with a few choice words that had left his ears red. But he supposed this place had a kind of folksy charm - wooden floors, plush rugs, a big log fireplace right below the TV, a wide window at the end of the room overlooking the slopes outside, swirling with snow. 

_It was a room for lovers_ , he thought - a sudden bitter taste in his mouth. 

His mind flashed to another snowy night, an abandoned cabin, two bodies huddling together for warmth, a stolen kiss, a night spent in each other’s arms.

Forcibly, he pushed that thought down, a panic so terrible rising in him that it threatened to overpower him if he dwelled any longer on that memory.

He picked up the wine and took a long chug straight out of the bottle. It had been a bad idea to come back to this resort. He thought he could handle it, but he should have known better.

 _Like you should’ve known better than to get married._ That voice again. God. Would there ever be a way to make it stop?

The things he had done to get rid of it these past five years. He had tried drinking first. There was a period after his...marriage...when he found himself waking up in the strangest of places with no recollection of how he got there - most times at Woobin or Yi Jung’s, after he had (presumably) drunk-called them to come and get him, a couple of times on the pavement next to whichever the newest, shiniest nightclub in town was that week, and once, drunk and bloody in a police holding cell, on charges of assault that he had no memory of. 

Then, he had left for America - forced by his mom, of course, like everything else in his life. Exiled, to clean up his act. And he had - at least in the way that was expected of an heir to a billion-dollar conglomerate. He had quit drinking, begun to attend his business management classes with something approaching regularity, sat through thousands of interminable meetings with stakeholders and potential partners that the Ha family had recommended. After a while, he had begun to take a genuine interest in the work - it was the only thing that kept him sane - and if the merger hadn’t been enough, the direct supervision of a young, forward-thinking CEO had truly taken Shinwa to the global heights his mother had always dreamt of. 

Who cared if he had had to bury everything he ever wanted in the process?

The worst of it all was the guilt. Jae-Kyung had really tried at first - with that headstrong, undying optimism of hers - to win him over, to do everything in her power to make him forget, as she had said she would. She had bailed him out of prison, cooked him breakfast as he nursed yet another hangover, sat through endless photoshoots for magazine covers, ad campaigns, promotional videos - all proclaiming them to be the youngest, brightest power couple in Asian business. She had even offered to exchange her dream of travelling the world for a place next to Jun Pyo at every board meeting. But it was useless. He just couldn’t be near Jae-Kyung without thinking of _her_ , and he couldn’t bear to think of her at all.

And so the inevitable happened. After two years of trying every trick in the book, Jae-Kyung finally washed her hands off of him. The last time she came to visit him in New York, six months before he was due to come back to Korea, she told him she’d be moving back to America for good. 

“It was a mistake, Joon. I should have let you go when I had the chance,” she’d said. “I regret it so deeply now, but I really and truly believed that my love would be enough for us. But I guess I was wrong.”

He had had nothing left to say to her - any resentment he felt long subsumed by his guilt at not being able to love her back. She had been pulled into the power play between him and his mother, and it had left them both scarred, with nothing else to show for it.

That had been more than a year ago. The official divorce proceedings were being held off - and the whole thing kept under wraps. They were in the middle of a big construction deal in South Africa and the families didn’t want to spook the investors. He sighed tiredly. That was what it all boiled down to - profit. He was not looking forward to what the future had in store - a careful, litigious division of Shinwa and Ha assets that would inevitably leave more scars on either side. 

He took another swig of the wine - not bothering to get up to find a glass in the kitchenette - and threw a quick glance at the closed door near the other end of the room. He wished fervently that whoever was on the other side of the door would leave him the hell alone. He hated small talk at the best of times, and today it was out of the question. 

He heard the doorknob turn on the other end and let out an audible groan.

_Aish. Just my luck._

Whoever it was, he was confident he could send them packing with a few sharp remarks - if they weren’t already intimidated enough by the fact that they were meeting the Great Gu Jun Pyo in person. In any case, the only thing people ever wanted from him was favours - and he wasn’t in the mood to grant them today.

The door opened. He readied himself to hear the familiar gasp of recognition, followed by simpering praise, deep bowing, a request for a photograph even.

But nothing came.

Looking up from his phone, Jun Pyo turned to look at the newcomer. A woman in her mid-twenties stood at the door, her hair falling messily over her shoulders, wearing big oversized pyjamas that reminded him of…

And suddenly, his vision swam and the whole world swayed beneath his feet because the woman had the face that he had been dreaming of for an eternity.


	5. Fireplace

Jan Di stared. She was dreaming, she must be. She must have fallen asleep and somehow found herself in a dream where Gu Jun Pyo was sitting in front of her, lazily sprawled on the sofa in a log cabin miles away from everything and everyone.

_This must be it. I am finally losing my mind._

The only indication that it wasn’t a dream - or a hallucination of her exhausted mind - was that her figment of imagination seemed equally surprised to see her. He had stood up and was staring at her with an intensity that would have cowered a lesser individual.

To her it felt like coming out into the open after being trapped in a dark room for a very long time. 

He looked much the same as he remembered - but he seemed taller now, his face more gaunt. For a mad, uncontrollable second, she had a burning desire to run her hands over those features that she once knew intimately - the sharp bridge of his nose, those lips, that firm jawline... 

She didn’t realize that she was walking towards him until she was only a few steps away from where he was standing. She was still not quite in control of her body, it seemed her hand had stretched out to lay a tentative finger on the edge of his jacket.

“Yaa, what are you doing?”

That voice. She had laid awake alone for years imagining that voice, afraid she’d forgotten it. Now, she realized, she needn’t have worried. It was the most familiar sound in the world.

“Are...are you for real?”

“Of course I’m real. Have you finally lost your mind?”

His last words seemed to jerk her out of her stupor - and she realized how close to him she was standing. Instantly, she took five steps back, putting the coffee table between them for good measure. She wasn’t sure she could handle being in the same _room_ as him, let alone being in close proximity.

“I...You…” She fumbled for a few seconds before she managed to frame a coherent sentence. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m about to ask you the same thing. What are _you_ doing here?”

“I was here for the doctors’ seminar…”

“No, I mean, _here_ , in my cabin…”

“Well, we were snowed in, and the people at the reception said that there are no - “ She stopped, and an old frustration rose up in her. “Wait - why am I explaining myself to you? This isn’t _your_ cabin...”

“It definitely is. I was told I would be undisturbed here - “

For a wild moment, Jan Di wondered if Jae Kyung was here with him, about to emerge from his room any second. _Please, God, let me die before that happens._

But he seemed to be alone. 

“Well, I was told I’d be sharing the cabin with a colleague -”

He was about to respond but he stopped for a second, and a quick look of understanding flashed across his face, followed immediately by something she couldn’t identify. Hurt? Anger?

“Right. I guess you and Ji-Hoo are colleagues now.”

At first, Jan Di didn’t comprehend the connection. And then she felt a sudden wave of inexplicable anger at how casually he had brought up her relationship - her _ex_ relationship - without acknowledging the fact that he was married, for God’s sake! 

Married. As soon as the word crossed her mind, she felt the certainty of it settle heavily in her stomach.

She consciously moved further a couple of steps backwards and bowed formally. 

“Well, I apologize for ruining your Christmas weekend - I’m sure you were looking forward to spending it with your wi-”

She was cut off by the sound of him standing up almost violently, pushing away the coffee table with a loud screech. 

He didn’t speak for a moment - as if embarrassed at his outburst. Then he said, with his usual superciliousness, “Yaa, Geum Jan Di! What’s with the bowing? When did you become so civilized?”

Anger flared up again within her. It had been five years - how did manage to push her buttons still?

“Well, a lot has happened over the past five years in my life that you don’t know about,” she snapped. 

A flash of - was it jealousy? - across his face again, but his tone was light.

“What did you do? Kill a few people on the surgical table? I always said you weren’t smart enough to be a doctor.”

“Well, if a complete buffoon like you could head a billion-dollar company…”

“Yaa, I make a couple of million every day -”

“It’s a pity that all that money can’t buy you a brain...”

He advanced a couple of steps towards her. Then, as if he suddenly realized what he was doing, he stopped. 

Silence stretched between them, soft as the snow falling outside. 

Finally, she cleared her throat. “It’s cold. Do you mind if I start the fire?”

“I’ll do it,” he said, turning towards the fireplace.

For a brief moment, Jan Di forgot the cruel absurdity of fate - being stuck in the same room as Gu Jun Pyo on Christmas Eve, miles away from everywhere - and smiled. “Like you’ve ever done it before.” 

“I’ve seen other people do it!” he replied defensively.

She shook her head and moved towards the fireplace. He hovered behind her, pretending to be useful. _Some things never change_ , she thought, and immediately felt her stomach twist - whether it was with sadness or guilt she didn’t quite understand.

She carefully set the logs up and, still crouched, stretched her arm for the lighter on the mantelpiece. A familiar burst of pain in her shoulder made her wince and she let out an involuntary grasp.

He was behind her in a second. “Are you okay?” he asked, bending towards her, his voice serious. 

She felt trapped, his body too close, his scent too overpowering, every inch of her screaming to lean back, sink into that warmth she knew so well. 

She got up so quickly that her head spun. “I’m fine,” she said, trying to inch away.

He didn’t budge. If anything, it seemed like he had somehow gotten closer. She moved back a tiny step, her back against the mantelpiece. 

“Does it still hurt? Your shoulder?”

She shook her head, not meeting his eyes. “Not much, really. Only when it’s cold. Or if I make sudden movements.”

“How is it that you’re a doctor but you haven’t managed to treat yourself?” he asked, almost to himself.

Again, that burst of anger - that prickling need to hurt him, to get to him in some way. 

“I take care of myself just fine. You don’t need to worry about me. Not any more.” 

He stilled at that last phrase. His eyes hardened.

“Yeah, I guess that’s Ji-Hoo’s job now.”

Jan Di grit her teeth, feeling an overwhelming desire to push him with all her might - anything to get some distance between her and this infuriating, frustrating man.

Instead, she stepped sideways, away from him, trying to even her breathing. 

“Wasn’t that always his job? Cleaning up after you?” she asked, failing to keep the sharp edge of bitterness out of her voice.

He turned towards her and closed the distance between them in two long strides. She felt herself step back as he approached, her body now against the wall next to the fireplace, and wondered if she’d taken it too far - needled the beast too much for it to lie sleeping.

Right in front of her, he seemed taller than ever before. His eyes were hard - like the first time she’d seen him, nonchalantly asking her friend to lick his boots. 

“And what about the mess _you_ made?”

In that moment she forgot how intimidating he could be when he wanted to. Five years. Five years of anger, resentment, hurt and despair - she felt it rise up in her throat, threatening to burst out of her, setting the cold night air around them ablaze. 

“You have a wife to clean that up! You married her in front of me.”

“And you didn’t stop me,” he hissed, bringing his head down to her ear, his breath on her neck.

She half-turned, trying to move away as he loomed over her. “How could you? How _could_ you…”

He grabbed her chin and turned her head up towards him. 

“Why. Didn’t. You. Stop. Me.” His breath was shaky now. “Why didn’t you tell me not to do it - how could _you_ just let me do it? How could you just give me away?”

She felt hot tears pricking at her eyes. _Stop, don’t cry. Don't cry because he’s asking you what you have asked yourself for five years._

“I couldn’t, okay?” She was practically yelling now. “I _couldn’t_. Even without your mother being what she was, I couldn’t ask you to throw away your entire life - everything you were born to be - because of _me_! How could I live with myself if I had done that?”

“How could you…” His voice was raised too, and his body seemed to have closed what little distance there had been between them. “How could _you_ live with yourself? How could I live without _you_? Did you ever think of that?”

“That’s all I have thought about for the last five years, Gu Jun P -”

She was cut off as he swooped down and pressed his lips against hers with a force that made her legs weak. For a second, she thought she was going to faint. 

Then she realized what was happening.

“Jun Pyo - s-stop,” she faltered as he came up for air, trying to push him away. “We can’t. We s-shouldn’t…”

But he showed no signs of stopping. Instead, he caught her hands in his, stilling them, and pushed them outwards, pinning her arms against the wall in one swift, hard motion. 

“Gu Jun Pyo!”

He dipped his head to her ear. “You stupid, foolish, low-IQ moron.” He paused, biting her earlobe, making her squirm. “But then, you wouldn’t be Geum Jan Di if you weren’t always driving me crazy.”

“Yaa, Ju -”

His mouth cut her off again, hard, seeking. This time, she found herself kissing him back - with a desperate hunger she thought she had quelled. It was like her body was alive again, burning - drawn to his touch like moth to a flame. 

He still had her arms pinned to the wall, so she arched her body towards him. He responded with a low growl, his mouth running down her neck into her collarbones, his hips grinding into her as he pressed her harder against the wall. 

Suddenly, her arms were free as the hands that were pinning them were tearing through the buttons of her top, and she took the opportunity to snake her fingers around his neck, grabbing a fistful of his hair as she roughly positioned his head over her breasts. He obliged eagerly, licking, sucking, biting her nipples so hard that she was sure they’d be sore tomorrow. But right now, she didn’t care. She wanted more - more of this man she had craved so desperately for the last five years.

As if he read her thoughts, he stopped what he was doing and grabbed her by the waist, lifting her up a little. Instinctively, she spread her legs, wrapping them around him as he reached between her thighs and slid his fingers into her. She felt herself thrust against him as his fingers moved deeper into her.

“Impatient, aren’t you?” he smiled into her ear. “I thought you wanted to stop?”

“Gu Jun Pyo,” she managed to whisper as his fingers slipped in and out of her way in a hard, rhythmic motion, making her body thud against the wall with each thrust, “I’m going to kill you if you stop.”


	6. Last Christmas

Later, much later, after Gu Jun Pyo had thoroughly examined every inch of her - running his finger over every delicate nook and cranny as she lay naked under him on the sofa, committing to memory how it felt to kiss her so long and so hard that she moaned, how her body shuddered as she came - again and again - under him, the soft sigh of pleasure that followed as he lay on top of her, skin to skin, wondering how he had survived without her touch for five years - only then, did he think of asking her:

“So, are you still with Ji-Hoo?”

She shook her head, exasperated, but her arms were still linked around his neck, his body still pressed against hers on the narrow sofa. 

“It’s a bit late in the day to ask me that, isn’t it?”

He shrugged, his hands playing with her hair. “I don’t care either way. But I wanted to make sure you were...all right. We kind of...got caught up in the moment.”

He saw a familiar look of anguish flash across her face and she suddenly scrambled up into a half-sitting position, grabbing his shirt from off the floor and pulling it over her head. It was, of course, enormous on her, and she looked more adorable than ever. He followed, sitting up, putting his arms around her waist, nestling his head at her shoulder, breathing in her scent.

“J-Jun Pyo…” she began, not turning around. “I...I’m sorry. We shouldn’t have… You...You’re m-m…”

“I’m not,” he cut in hastily, feeling her tense in his arms. “Not technically. We’ve been separated for over a year now.” 

She turned towards him at that. “Jun Pyo...I…” 

“Don’t,” he said, lifting his head from her shoulder to kiss her softly. “Not right now. Not tonight.”

She turned to settle more comfortably in his arms. He pulled her in, feeling the familiar weight of her as she rested her head against his chest. Suddenly, miraculously, the room felt warmer.

“I’m not with Ji-Hoo,” she mumbled into his chest. “I--I broke up with him because I was working too much.” 

He grinned. “Typical. You know you don’t have to work thirty part-time jobs any more now, don’t you, Ms Dry Cleaner?” 

“You moron, I was working too much because…” She stopped. 

“Because you missed me?”

She was silent, her hands absently tracing his collarbones.

“Because you felt like there was nothing else left in your life?”

She stirred in his arms.

“Because you couldn’t live without me?” he prodded.

“Yaa, Gu Jun Pyo! Just because I’m a doctor now doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten how to throw a high-kick.”

He sniggered as saw the familiar outrage on her face - and bent down to plant a deep kiss on her mouth. 

“That wasn’t fair,” she grumbled as he pulled away.

“You know I don’t like playing fair.”

“I thought you would have grown up a bit by now.”

“I have. I am back in Korea and I still haven’t killed my mother.”

She smacked him lightly on the arm, but her face grew thoughtful. “About that…”

“Not tonight. Tomorrow.” He squeezed her hand. “I promise. Tomorrow, we can tell each other everything. Tonight...”

He paused as she looked up at him, her eyes searching. 

“Tonight, let’s just pretend the last five years didn’t happen. Let’s go back to being nineteen and in love, stuck in a cabin in the middle of nowhere.” 

She gave a little smile. “Right. The time you took off all your clothes.”

“To save your life.” 

“That’s what _you_ said.”

“It was freezing!”

“Well, we never got around to lighting that thing,” she jerked her head towards the fireplace, “and it’s getting pretty cold in here.” She paused. “Some might say it’s freezing, even. So, aren’t you going to save my life again?” 

He grinned as he began unbuttoning her shirt. “No. This time, you’re going to save mine.”

\-----

Later, as they both lay snuggling under a blanket they’d dragged from her bedroom, passing the bottle of wine between them in silence, Gu Jun Pyo murmured, “Merry Christmas, Jan Di Baht. It’s long past twelve.”

She moved in closer, sliding her feet in between his. “I thought you weren’t a fan of Christmas. Weren’t you always alone at home?”

He wrapped his arms tighter around her, planting a kiss in her hair. “Well, I have a feeling I won’t be alone any more for it.”

“Only if there’s a Christmas miracle.”

He bristled. “Yaa, I’m really going to kill you if you leave me again.”

“You half-wit. Doctors have to work on Christmas. I have a shift tomorrow.”

“You can’t go. We just got back together…”

“I have to.”

“You _can’t_. I’ll talk to your supervisor.”

“That won’t work.”

“Fine, I’ll talk to your board of directors then.”

“What the -”

“I’ll buy the entire hospital if I have to.”

“Just to stop me from going to work?”

“And to be the boss of you.”

“Jun Pyo?”

“Yeah?”

He groaned as a stinging smack hit his arm. “OW!”

“You’ll _never_ be the boss of me.”

“Fine, fine. At least, let me drop you off tomorrow.”

“Do you think the roads will clear by morning?”

He sighed. Always the salt of the earth, this woman. “Who said anything about roads?”

“Do you really expect me to show up to work in a _helicopter_?”

“Well, you better get used to it.”

She sighed, slid down into his lap and closed her eyes. He watched her with a smile on his face, lightly running his hands over her face till he could tell from her breathing that she was asleep. Gently, he slid out from under her, picked her up and carried her to the bedroom, tucking her in and settling down next to her. 

Outside the snow fell gently. Tomorrow would bring its own battles - but tonight…tonight - he smiled - all was right in his world.


End file.
